A marketing plan’s main purpose is to introduce the business to the consumer market. The marketing plan should focus on creating buzz about the business and steps to keep the business name in the consumer’s mind through clever slogans or advertisement. If successful, the plan will create buzz and a high demand for the service, product, or brand. Consumers will line up to purchase the brand and thus lead to profits.
Simple enough?
It’s amazing the number of smart business owners who start a new business without a well thought out marketing plan. What follows are tips to draft a basic marketing plan quickly and easily. Adapt them to fit your business situation.
Define the Business
What are the products or services? Is it a local or national business? Will the business go online or be an established brick and mortar firm?
Research Customers
Who are the best customers for the business, what are their purchasing habits, their income level, education level, are they male, female, young, older, city dwellers, suburbanites, and who will be in direct competition with the business?
Unique Niche
Find a fresh niche to fill with the service. For example, there are hundreds of day care services in most communities. Here’s an example, focus on working moms with special needs children. Offering care they could not get for the same price at other day care centers. Or you might decide to open a day care center earlier and close later in the day than similar centers for parents who work long hours.
Details
Write a detailed report about what your business offers. This will help when writing classified ads or business sales letters.
Who Is the Competition?
Find out who is marketing a similar service in your community. How much they charge and their unique selling point. Determine ways to out market the competition.
Mission Statement
Write a mission statement telling what you are about. Explain what the business sells and the unique selling point.
Marketing/Pricing Steps
Write the steps that will be established to create demand for the product, service, or brand. Will it be by higher quality, lower prices, performance, extra’s. How much will the business charge. Will the company charge less than competitors to attract new customers. Charge a similar price, but offer extra’s. Or charge slightly more and provide better quality. Use this as a unique selling point.
Budgets/Goals
How much money will be invested in marketing the company. What income is forcasted per week, month, year? Or how many sales per week, month, year? How many customers served per week, month, year?
Measuring Success
What methods will be used to measure a successful marketing plan? Reaching a predetermined income. Selling more than the competition. Satisfied Customers. At the end of on year review all business marketing statistics. Did the company reach projected goals? If not, revise the marketing plan until you find a promotional plan that works forthe company.
Need More Info?
For more detailed information on market planning Visit local bookstores for books on marketing or read the many free marketing ebooks found online. Read everything you find on advertising or marketing. Set up research files on marketing strategies. Keep striving to improve and to find effective promotional ideas that reach targeted customers.
